The title of this post is inspired by an essay by Thomas Pynchon, which I'm including a link to at the bottom of this post. So often in our discussions of online education and teaching with technology, we jump to a discussion of how to use technology without pausing to think about why we use technology in the first place. While I certainly wouldn't advocate that we should usher in a new era of Luddism in higher education, I do think it's important for us to at least ask ourselves these questions.
Certainly, we can use technology. Technology seduces us and the students with its graphic interfaces, touch screens, and attention-grabbing visuals. But should we use it? What are the drawbacks of tech? Are there situations where tech shouldn't be used or where its use should be made as invisible as possible? How does tech reconfigure the learning environment, both literally and figuratively? When a classroom (virtual or otherwise) revolves around tech, what shape does it take? How is this shape different from the configurations of classrooms that don't revolve around tech?
To help us think about these questions, I'm also including several other resources in addition to the Pynchon essay. The first is a short film made by students about how student life and and the boundaries of the classroom have changed in recent years. It ends with a very moving ode to the chalkboard. Then, I've included some links to various clips from the animated television show Futurama. They offer a critique (both silly and profound) of how we interact with technology in contemporary society.
"A Vision of Students Today": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o
Pynchon, "Is it OK to be a Luddite?"
http://www.themodernword.com/pynchon/pynchon_essays_luddite.html
http://www.themodernword.com/pynchon/pynchon_essays_luddite.html
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